PICA Board Expected To Vote On Philadelphia’s ‘Five-Year Plan’

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PHILADELPHIA (CBS) – The state agency that oversees Philadelphia’s cash-starved finances is expected to vote on the mayor’s long-range budget on Tuesday and the concerns are many.

The PICA board meets to vote ‘yea or nay’ on what’s called the “Five-Year Plan” — the mayor’s long-range budget that shows how the city will stay afloat until 2016. However, approval by the state agency is by no means a slam dunk.

Among the numerous concerns is the possibility that the school district may need more of a bailout beyond what City Council just approved. Also looming is the possibility of budget cuts at the federal level as talks between the White House and Congress drag on.

With these and other risks, the size of the city’s fund balance is viewed by some to be too small — too little a cushion in the face of these other risks.